That Ivy Style Exhibit

Hello-Hello, happy middle of the week to everyone.

Today’s schedule mandates brevity, so we’ll keep the post to one topic. It is a subject I should have written about months ago, hopefully it isn’t tedious for too many readers.

Hickey Freeman Blog

We’re talking about the Ivy Style exhibit at the Fashion Institute of Technology Museum, unfortunately it closed in January. More from the Museum’s show notes.

“Ivy style” is one of the most enduring and recognizable sartorial modes in the world. It began as the “Ivy League Look” on the quads and in the libraries of elite, all-male, American universities, and consists of a small repertoire of classic items, such as Shetland tweed jackets and Oxford button-down shirts, plus the more casual madras shorts and khaki pants.

Yours truly is beyond chagrined at not having written about this sooner, at the very least before the exhibition closed, arrggh. Several pieces from the show: left to right, a Brooks blazer with 1923 Princeton insignia, another with Princeton’s 1919 insignia, and a 1916 Yale emblazoned blazer.

The Museum at FIT

More from Hickey Freeman’s blog:

Many forget that the “Ivy style” as we know it began as a more formal way of dress on campuses like Harvard, Yale and Princeton, which eventually spread beyond those all-male universities. In blue blazers with gold buttons, madras prints, bowties and pocket squares, the exhibit proves this iconic way of dressing continues to influence today’s designers.

Three more pieces from the exhibition, a classic raccoon coat, a Chipp madras jacket and linen suit, correctly described by Art Info as Ivy staples.

ArtInfo.com

Art Info’s story includes perspective from the Museum’s deputy director:

While the Ivy look is pretty democratic these days, with everyone from H&M to Hermes turning out brass button peacoats and embroidered smoking slippers, this wasn’t always the case. “If you look at pre-World War II images, you’re talking about more of an elitist group of people, people with more money who could send their children to college” Mears said.

More recent looks.

Via StyleSight

From The Journal’s review of the show:

Brooks Brothers, J. Press, Arrow, Hathaway and Gant—these are Ivy eternals. Chipp, an offshoot of J. Press, would expand and popularize the “Go to Hell” look, a mix of bright colors normally considered outside the masculine palette—coral, yellow, mint—and constituting a casual smack at the status quo.

Below, one of the tableaux from the exhibition via the Princeton Alumni Weekly.

Photo by Eli Schwartz, Princeton ’60 via Princeton Alumni Weekly

Back to The Journal piece by Laura Jacobs:

Ivy-style clothes need not come at great expense; they need not be new; but they must hit the ineffable balance between carefree, careless and correct. I have never forgotten the scorn of a young man commenting on Nantucket Reds that weren’t bought at Murray’s in Nantucket. They would never fade to the proper shade of shrimp pink and so they were impostors—”not our sort of people” pants. Getting the uniform wrong locks you out of the tribe.

Below left, items circa the twenties, on the right, an Arrow shirt signed by Harvard’s 1933 Football Team.

MFIT Ivy Style Microsite

From Women’s Wear Daily’s story:

Ivy League style permeates nearly every fiber of American fashion, and a new exhibition at The Museum at FIT delves into its history.

It explores the “decline and resurgence” of Ivy League fashion and the rise of the preppy movement.

George Chinsee/Women’s Wear Daily

The WWD article quotes Town & Country’s G. Bruce Boyer, he was a collaborator on the show:

Boyer said the show is “very timely,” since “every Italian brand today is trying to do the authentic Brooks Brothers button-down. And look at Thom Browne and Michael Bastian — they take great traditional looks and make them hip and contemporary.”

I didn’t realize the origins of the polo coat, more from the exhibit microsite:

Many garments have been derived from the game of polo, including this camel hair overcoat that was originally used as a “wait” coat by British polo players during “chukkas” (the term for polo’s periods of play). In design, it was at first little more than a heavy bathrobe type wrap coat, but when British polo teams began making regular visits to the U.S. in the 1920s, it was modified and became popular on elite college campuses.

Ivy Style Microsite

Details magazine offered this:

While traditional J. Press and Brooks Brothers gear features prominently in the exhibit, it’s fun to see styles loosen up and evolve over the years, from the formal evening ensembles of the 1920s to the preppy sweater-and-shorts combos of the fifties and sixties.

Details

Even though I missed seeing the exhibit in person, there is a wonderful book of essays accompanying the exhibition, edited by Ms. Mears.

Yale University Press

More on the book from its publisher, Yale University Press:

Ivy Style celebrates both high-profile proponents of the style—including the Duke of Windsor, Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, and Miles Davis—who made the look their own, and designers such as Ralph Lauren, J. McLaughlin, Tommy Hilfiger, Michael Bastian, and Thom Browne, who have made it resonate with new generations of style enthusiasts.

Ivy Style is also available at Amazon and other outlets.

One of the best parts of the exhibit is the way curators drew upon the blogging community, several of my favorite blogs were involved in a variety of ways. Christian Chensvold over at the Ivy Style blog has an essay in the book discussed above, he has several stellar posts on the show. One offers a delightful video walk-through of the exhibit hosted by Richard Press.

Muffy Aldrich of Daily Prep renown is another author I admire tremendously and love reading, she donated items for use in the exhibit. I think you’ll enjoy this April post showing preps for the show. TDP was also featured in a Symposium affiliated with Ivy Style, for a real treat spend some time on this post, the entire slide show about Muffy’s blog is viewable.

John Tinseth writes The Trad, always enjoyable and a place where I have lurked for years, he was part of the Symposium as well. In this post you can see loads of photos from the exhibit, including the vintage dorm room shown below.

The Trad

Dusty at Maxminimus is yet one more writer I regard with great admiration, he was also part of the Symposium and this post details that experience brilliantly.

The show may have closed in January, but hopefully you will be able to enjoy it virtually via some of the links included above.

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One more tidbit, anyone interested in a new personalized phone case might want to visit the always-wonderful Nautical by Nature blog. We’re just tickled to be sponsoring a giveaway for one of our Preppy Planet custom cases.

Nautical by Nature

Even if you don’t need a case, pop in and say ‘hey’ to Kate, she is the bee’s knees.

That Ivy Look, & Other Monday Musings

Hello-Hello, and Happy New Week to everyone!

We begin with a look at one of the WSJ stories we enjoyed reading in Saturday’s paper, “The Return of the Ivy Look“. In the story Darrell Hartman looks at the style’s recent rise in popularity among those generally attracted to more mainstream fashions.

“Didn’t go to an Ivy League school? Never played a team sport in your life? No problem! Jock-inspired styles cribbed from the golden age of collegiate athletics will win big for spring”

F. Martin Ramin for The Wall Street Journal,

In explaining the actual look, the piece quotes a longtime J. Press associate as well as our friend Christian Chensvold from Ivy Style:

“Ivy League style was something that just was, as opposed to something intended to create an effect,” said David Wilder…

At least it was for anyone who was the real deal—in other words, “old-money guys who’d all gone to prep school, had that natural nonchalance, and looked like they’d been living in their clothes since the day they were born,” Mr. Chensvold said.”

Mr. Hartman discusses the resurgence in popularity for what many call ‘heritage brands,’ those mentioned above as well as others, like Brooks Brothers, while also considering some of those new to the genre, including Polo Ralph Lauren and Band of Outsiders.  Below, two pieces from Band of Outsiders.

One of our favorite books is also referenced:

“That species is the revered subject of “Take Ivy,” an influential study of elite Northeastern campuses published in 1965 by a team of fashion-savvy Japanese writers and photographers. For years a cult item among fashion insiders, the book was finally released in U.S. stores (including the ever-trendy J. Crew) this summer, flooding the menswear world with images of wholesome-looking ’60s undergrads bent over books in libraries, strolling across leafy quads and—perhaps most importantly—demonstrating a robust enthusiasm for sports.

Via The Fox is Black

There’s much more info and insight in the WSJ story, we happily recommend this one, it is a good read.

The book cited above, Take Ivy, was discussed at length in many articles, The Daily Mail offered The Ultimate Guide to Ivy League Chic Straight from Japan last fall.

“Written around a collection of photographs by Teruyoshi Hayashida, Take Ivy proves how little the look has changed over the past 50 years.

The book deconstructs the ‘casual, yet neat’ style favoured by students at the eight Ivy League universities, such as the shirt-and-Bermuda-shorts look, and varsity colours.”

Via The Daily Mail

BTW, if interested in Take Ivy, we still have a limited number of copies, the book may be found here.

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Next, we wanted to share a few styles from the upcoming collaboration between designer Sophie Theallet and Nine West.

Courtesy Images via StyleList

Many of the styles are definitely Pretty in Pink, these pieces are made with a silk repp stripe.

Courtesy Images via StyleList

We are very impressed with the ballet flats, the styles will be available in more than just the pink color palette.

Courtesy Images via StyleList

The collection is slated for a May launch.

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Frequent readers know we have a fondness for Kate Spade, the styles are attractive and the company’s whimsical approach to marketing is a breath of fresh air.  Another reason we like the company?

Kate Spade

It’s open approach to online sharing. Above, an illustration for one of many free cyber Valentines that may be sent to anyone you choose; below, a look at how a full card appears.

Kate Spade

We show the artwork from two more cards below, but be assured there *are* many designs offered that are not pink, click here to peruse the pretty options.

Our thanks to the one and only College Prepster, Miss Carly, for the original tip on this!

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A quick note of the social sort for those near our nation’s capitol next week, Vineyard Vines is throwing a party to launch its spring collection.

Vineyard Vines via Sky Blue Events

V2 has partnered with our friends at Sky Blue Events for next Wednesday’s do at the retailer’s new Tyson’s store; the fun begins at 5pm, click here for more info.

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We leave you with two quick hits, the first involves this weekend’s bright and sunny Lilly fashion show at the Ringling Museum of Art.  The show was a fundraiser for the Museum, and the always delightful She Blogs Couture by the Sea was in attendance and shared *outstanding* images of the event on her blog.

The second comes to us via a gracious reader. Last week we showed the Sperry Top-Sider keychain in a post, but sadly, it sold out very quickly.

Sperry Top-Sider

That generous reader told us about these Rainbow Sandals Keychains.

We want to thank our kindly commenter for the link.

And with that, we say goodbye until next time.

Collaborations of a Preppy Kind (Ahem) & “New Prep”

If this isn’t a glorious fall day, we’re not sure what is; we hope yours is equally bright and beautiful.

We have all manner of collaborative partnerships to share, almost all with a prep slant. We begin with one involving a longtime Princess fave, J. Press, and Urban Outfitters.

NY Magazine

NY Magazine has more:

“J. Press, the preppy menswear label beloved by every Ivy Leaguer with Wall Street ambitions, has partnered with Urban Outfitters to make a line of sweaters, ribbon belts, ties, vests, and shirts. The collection features a tie in Princeton orange, a scarf in Dartmouth green, and a belt in Cornell red, among other collegiate-inspired items that are perfect for frolicking around the quad and spilling beer.”

Womenswear inclusion in a future J. Press collaboration would make us a very happy camper indeed.

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Next, a partnership we have previously mentioned, and one that has had us more than a tad nervous.

Fred Perry

Yes, it is the Amy Winehouse Fred Perry collection, definitely in the You Can’t Make this Stuff Up category.

Via

While the talented performer’s troubled history would make it easy to mock the line, the reality is that there are many appealing pieces, especially for those of us hopelessly lost in the fifties.

It is unlikely we shall acquire anything from the line, for as much as we like many of the items, we also recognize our limitations, knowing we would forever associate pieces with Ms. Winehouse and the frequently unfortunate circumstances she frequently finds herself in, despite her amazing talents.  However, it *is* an extremely fun group to graze, click here to do just that.

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Our next collection has received oodles of coverage, and we are more than a little late to the party on this one. (“Late to the party” being a teevee snooze news term referencing ‘old news’ ((yes, an oxymoron, we understand that)), perilously akin to ‘moldy oldie,’ news coverage that should not be allowed to float out over the airwaves.) Of course we are talking about the Lanvin H&M collection.

There are some amazing party frocks, among other goodies.

The Guardian has more, referencing Lanvin design genius Alber Elbaz.

“The collection, entitled Lanvin Hearts H&M, includes party clothes and accessories for women and men and, unmistakably, carries the Elbaz design signature.”

The line approaches “we’ll take one of each” levels. Unfortunately, the Prepatorium is not located near an H&M, and the company does not sell online in the US.

The word ‘droolworthy’ comes to mind.

How popular does H&M expect the collection to be? We go back to the Guardian for that answer.

“A spokesman for the brand said at the preview: “We expect it to sell out that day.” H&M will limit shoppers to two versions of the same dress in an attempt to prevent the growing practice of eBay flipping, but the spokesman admitted that it was impossible to control.”

We can see why.

After all, as we are wont to say here at Princess InterGalactic HQ, “Life is better with a bow.”

The collection launches November 23, to see all of the goodies, pop over to Vogue UK for the lookbook.  Sigh.

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Our final collaborative endeavor involves a perennial favorite, The Gap, and an unlikely partner, Valentino.

Via High Snobette

It is a very small line, only seven pieces, launching in late November, but only available at Gap stores in London and new Milan shop, as well as online at the super-hip Colette.

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We want to do what we believe is called a ‘shout out’ to friend and fab designer Kiel James Patrick.

Providence Journal

His hometown paper has done quite the spread on his growing company, describing his creations as “New Prep,” perhaps a surprise to Kiel, certainly an old school prep if ever we met one.  We love that the story points that it was Sarah Vickers, Kiel’s longtime partner and collaborator, who suggested he actually start the company.  (Go Sarah!)  We are proud to carry many of Kiel and Sarah’s designs here at the Princess, including KJP headbands and earrings.

It’s always nice to see good things happen to good people, especially these two.

The Providence Journal/Kris Craig

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We leave you with a quick Sales & Savings alert:

Polo Ralph Lauren

Polo Ralph Lauren is doing its “Private Sale” (don’t get us started on the ‘privacy’ of said sale), offering up to 40% off regular prices, as well as an additional 15% off the 40% off. Use promo code NOV0410 to receive the additional discount.  Also offering discounted goods, Bergdorf Goodman.

The retailer’s fall sale kicked off today.

Until next time, grins and giggles!

 

“Here Comes the Prepster”???

Hello-Hello, is everyone recovered from the weekend’s festivities?

We begin with an interesting story from AOL’s Daily Finance, “Trucker Hat Meet Boat Shoe: Here Comes the Prepster“.

“An amalgamation of two seemingly irreconcilable looks, preppie and hipster, the new style seems poised to take hipsters to a new sartorial level while it brings preppies to the forefront of fashion.”

Us? At the forefront of fashion? Bruce Watson’s story references names familiar to readers:

“…the classic preppy brands, a collection of companies that have never really achieved fashion superstardom, but have managed to maintain a robust cultural presence for decades — or, in the case of Brooks Brothers, over a century. From LL Bean to J Press, Murray’s Toggery Shop to Paul Stuart, these brands are the opposite of faddish: steadily profitable, they have generated loyal, if relatively small, followings.”

The author makes a strong argument for the blending of the two styles.

“While popular retailers like the aforementioned Zara, H&M and Uniqlo have latched on to a stylish office look that borders on preppy, some of the classic preppy brands have also sought to capture the hipster market. LL Bean, for example, launched LL Bean Signature, a more slim-cut, tailored version of the company’s classic garments. Priced a little bit higher than most of the brand’s offerings, Signature’s clothes were designed by popular designer Alex Carleton, and are skewed to a younger audience. Similarly, Brooks Brothers’ Black Fleece and Paul Stuart’s Phineas Cole lines also pander to a more body-conscious audience.

To read Mr. Watson’s ultimate conclusion, and also see a video on the topic, click here. (NOTE: If the author sounds familiar, we recently posted about his story “Fashionistas, Recessionistas and Prepsters: Is Preppy Dead?“)

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Next on the hit parade (and perhaps evidence of the validity of Mr. Watson’s theory), a story from men’s fashion site District Cut, “Coach Gets Preppy“.

The photos used in the post are from über-hip Japanese style magazine Popeye.

“Riding on the sudden resurgence of prep and collegiate style, the editorial entitled “Take Preppy” mixes and matches bags and other accessories, giving Coach a relevance that’s sure been missed.”

The story also provides some welcome information, if true:

“Come spring, nary a monogram print in sight…”

Sadly, any expectation that spring will bring merchandise sans the logo goes in the “we’ll believe it when we see it” category. While there are some lovely Coach pieces available now…

Fully half of the apparel and accessories items carry a Coach logo, be it the otherwise appealing Morgan Blazer…

… or a basic hat.

We shall effort optimism on this front.  Regardless, we are clearly in the minority with logophobia issues, the company just reported another extraordinarily profitable quarter.

For something irresistible and logo-free, look at these darling Coach Enamel Bow Bangles.

Cute, cute, cute.

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We have a different sort of Pretty in Pink (and green) to share today, related to our obsession fondness for textiles, we enjoy hoarding a staggering amount the little collection we have acquired over the years.  So when visiting the always delightful Diary of a Southern Belle and seeing her post about fabric, we realized we had to share one of the treasures she posted. Knowing our fondness for all things nautical, here are two swatches from the “Urban Zoologie” collection by Ann Kelle.

Not included in the Belle’s post but meriting a peek, two wonderful Adventures in Argyle and sweet hearts from the ‘Remix’ Collection by the same designer.

Our other Pretty in Pink comes via Erin at the Pink and Green Scene.

The letters are from Bliss Living, and available in a variety of colors and patterns.

With those fun photos we say goodbye until next time!

Is Prep Dead? (More Importantly, How Did We Miss This?)

Hello-Hello, is everyone ready for a weekend?

We thought it was time for another True Prep update, the volume of media surrounding the book is significant, including multiple declarations that ‘prep is dead’; in at least one instance responsibility for this hypothetical occurrence is linked directly to the book.

We begin with this headline from a September NPR story:

We haven’t heard the entire NPR story, but did read what is posted online and were unable to decipher exactly how the book’s existence translated into a sign that prep was dead.  The NPR story does carry a lengthy quote from this story in The Atlantic:

As always, the Atlantic review is very well done, essentially positing that ‘prep’ has  been absorbed by a larger, international class.  From the piece by Benjamin Schwarz:

“Whereas OPH was crammed with fine-grained analysis— defining, say, the subtle distinctions between Brooks Brothers (mainstream), J. Press (old guard), and Paul Stuart (urbane)—True Prep’s analysis seems vague and flabby. Whereas OPH’s preppies belonged to a distinct and inward-looking subculture, the preppies of True Prep, defined largely by what they buy and wear, are in many ways indistinguishable from fancily educated professionals.”

The writer doesn’t fault the skill set of authors Lisa Birnbach and Chip Kidd, looking instead at the consumption habits of the era, particularly those of the conspicuous kind.

“Cracked heirlooms, threadbare antique rugs, sturdy L.L. Bean boots, duct-taped Blucher moccasins, and workhorse Volvo station wagons defined OPH’s aesthetic. True Prep’s preppies, armed with BlackBerrys and iPods, wear Verdura jewelry and Prada and vintage Gucci loafers, tote Goyard and Tory Burch bags, and adorn their desks with tchotchkes from Smythson (a firm whose success, Ian Jack notes in The Guardian, has been built “on selling baubles to the impressionable rich”).

It’s no secret we whined struggled with some of the brands featured in True Prep. (For Ms. Birnbach’s comments regarding the J. Crew metallic Top-siders at J. Crew, simply click here.) We have been vocal about the volume of J. Crew & Burberry products showcased in the book.  Frequent readers know the tragic truth: TP and The Consort are two boring, old-school preps.  Our style is basically no style.

However, we do take issue with this claim from a column in the Journal, the headline reads “Preppy Pitfall: All That Madras, Not Enough Effort.” It is the subhead that is irksome:

Did Lisa Birnbach’s original ‘Handbook’ drive people lazy?”

Eric Felten cites TOPH (The Official Preppy Handbook) as a factor.

“One simply mustn’t try too hard. A key principle of what Ms. Birnbach called the Preppy Value System was Effortlessness: “If life is a country club, then all functions should be free from strain.”

The notion that Ms. Birnbach is responsible for the work ethic of a generation is ludicrous.

“Unless you actually have a fat trust fund to underwrite your nonchalance, an aversion to effort is hardly a strategy for success. Which may explain some of our national woes.”

We like Ms. Birnbach; she is talented, witty and loads of fun, but while wielding significant influence, she is not quite so powerful as to be responsible for this:

“Over the last couple of decades we’ve seen the contempt for effort spread far beyond the original preppy demographic. Now it’s commonplace for middle-class kids to go to college and behave as though they are scions of the gentry—abjuring studies and indulging in the bottomless kegger that a recent book dubbed “The Five Year Party.”

Blaming These Challenging Times on any single author just doesn’t work for us.

Next on the review list, AOL’s Daily Finance offers this:

Bruce Watson’s story takes a more reasoned approach:

“…she attached a philosophical component to the look, explicitly wedding the preppy style to a hodgepodge of social values, including traditionalism, thrift, and brand loyalty. In Birnbach’s analysis, preppies buy Brooks Brothers and Orvis because these companies have been in business for over a hundred years and have proven reliability.”

As the monolithic 1980’s preppy culture has fractured into a variety of brands and styles, from Gossip Girl to hip-hop Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren to Vineyard Vines, it’s worth wondering if this explosion of prep may also signal its demise.”

Mr. Watson points to the efforts at updating the fashions offered by some of the stalwarts, like LL Bean’s Signature and Black Fleece at Brooks Brothers, a necessity if such establishments are to compete against trendier, “hipper” (ahem) offerings at retailers like J. Crew. Unfortunately the writer misses an important point in this portion of his story:

“In True Prep, however, conversation positively drips with references to the signs of wealth, as Birnbach instructs readers: “Your car wasn’t in the shop; your Mercedes was getting fixed. You didn’t wear shoes; you wore Manolos.”

The book isn’t instructing readers to converse in this fashion. To the contrary, this specific segment laments the way people speak these days, bemoaning the ostentation and name-dropping and label flashing.  Melanie Spencer’s story in the Austin Statesman illustrates this distinction with a quote from the author:

“”People are oft misbehaving and name-dropping and talking about money,” she says. “It is vulgar. It’s becoming normal. I’m here to help correct. Something as benign as ‘Sex in the City’ sort of sanctioned gross materialism. Instead of saying, ‘Oh, my shoes hurt,’ it’s, ‘My Manolos hurt.’ You are sending all kinds of messages. You can say ‘My car is in the shop.’ You don’t have to say, ‘My Jaguar is in the shop.’ It would be so refreshing for people to go back to those basics.”

We had to laugh aloud at this part of the story, it seems not everyone in Austin was fond of the prep aesthetic. (Gasp!)

“”Preppy fashion was the lowest point in the history of women’s attire,” says longtime Austinite, style and design writer and Austin Monthly Home editor Helen Thompson.”

Oops.  Hopefully Melanie, I Pick Pretty and other notable Austin denizens won’t tell Ms. Thompson next time we visit.

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Enough of the deep thinking, we have an eye-popping Pretty in Pink & Green to share:

The Argyle Pullover is available at Elegant Baby, and there is also a version in blues if looking for something a little more sedate.

With that, we are off to enjoy the weekend, and hope you are able to do the same!